February 16, 2009

Win a Free "Bottle Shock" DVD!

Monday, February 16th, 2009The movie Bottle Shock is finally out on DVD. Actually, it came out on February 3rd, after premiering in theaters last summer.

Since its August release, I'd been asked many times for my opinion. One friend was even kind enough to send me a logo T-shirt - they're quite nice, actually. But I hadn't found time to see the film until a promotional copy arrived in January.

I have to say, I was negatively pre-disposed to the movie, based on its reviews and inevitable comparisons to my own licensed entity - the movie "Sideways". But selecting your movies based on reviews may be as misleading as buying wine based on a Spectator rating. I found the movie entertaining, despite its (seemingly inevitable, Hollywood) characateur-ation of a well-known Napa family. Not to mention a few discomforting enophilic inaccuracies.

If you're reading these words right now, you qualify as a wine geek. And, like me, you consider your geekhood a badge of honor. As such, you are likely well familiar with this movie's plot. But jut in case you're a wine geek who's been living under a rock...

...The movie follows two merging story lines - the first is that of the Barrets, a dysfunctional father-son team who own Chateau Montelena - then a struggling winery. During the course of the movie (and no, this isn't giving away a mysterious ending), their Chardonnay rises to fame when it beats the best from France in the 1976 blind tasting now known as "The Judgment of Paris" (See George M. Taber's book by the same name).

The second story line follows Steven Spurrier (portrayed by Alan Rickman), a British ex-pat wine merchant whose Parisian shop is empty of customers. To increase revenues, Spurrier decides to visit Napa so he can select wines to be tasted against the best of France in a blind tasting he was organizing as a promotional even for his store/wine school. He'd invited some of the most respected palates in France to participate, though he had no idea it would become the most famous blind tasting in the world. In fact, Taber (writing for Time magazine) was the sole journalist who deemed the event worthy of coverage.

All told, Bottle Shock is an amusing movie that will appeal to many wine lovers, despite a few scenes that will invoke slaps to the head. And the wine country scenery makes it well worth watching (and Taylor/Dushku don't hurt, either). Now, on to the contest.

How To Win Your Free DVDEnter before the end of the week. We'll randomly draw three entries from those getting the correct answers and contact you for mailing instructions.

Sorry Entry Deadline Was Feb. 20, 2009!

In what year did this famed tasting occur?*

Who was the only journalist in attendance at the tasting?*

What was the name of the Wine Merchant who staged this famous tasting?*

Comments

Win a Free "Bottle Shock" DVD!

Monday, February 16th, 2009The movie Bottle Shock is finally out on DVD. Actually, it came out on February 3rd, after premiering in theaters last summer.

Since its August release, I'd been asked many times for my opinion. One friend was even kind enough to send me a logo T-shirt - they're quite nice, actually. But I hadn't found time to see the film until a promotional copy arrived in January.

I have to say, I was negatively pre-disposed to the movie, based on its reviews and inevitable comparisons to my own licensed entity - the movie "Sideways". But selecting your movies based on reviews may be as misleading as buying wine based on a Spectator rating. I found the movie entertaining, despite its (seemingly inevitable, Hollywood) characateur-ation of a well-known Napa family. Not to mention a few discomforting enophilic inaccuracies.

If you're reading these words right now, you qualify as a wine geek. And, like me, you consider your geekhood a badge of honor. As such, you are likely well familiar with this movie's plot. But jut in case you're a wine geek who's been living under a rock...

...The movie follows two merging story lines - the first is that of the Barrets, a dysfunctional father-son team who own Chateau Montelena - then a struggling winery. During the course of the movie (and no, this isn't giving away a mysterious ending), their Chardonnay rises to fame when it beats the best from France in the 1976 blind tasting now known as "The Judgment of Paris" (See George M. Taber's book by the same name).

The second story line follows Steven Spurrier (portrayed by Alan Rickman), a British ex-pat wine merchant whose Parisian shop is empty of customers. To increase revenues, Spurrier decides to visit Napa so he can select wines to be tasted against the best of France in a blind tasting he was organizing as a promotional even for his store/wine school. He'd invited some of the most respected palates in France to participate, though he had no idea it would become the most famous blind tasting in the world. In fact, Taber (writing for Time magazine) was the sole journalist who deemed the event worthy of coverage.

All told, Bottle Shock is an amusing movie that will appeal to many wine lovers, despite a few scenes that will invoke slaps to the head. And the wine country scenery makes it well worth watching (and Taylor/Dushku don't hurt, either). Now, on to the contest.

How To Win Your Free DVDEnter before the end of the week. We'll randomly draw three entries from those getting the correct answers and contact you for mailing instructions.

Sorry Entry Deadline Was Feb. 20, 2009!

In what year did this famed tasting occur?*

Who was the only journalist in attendance at the tasting?*

What was the name of the Wine Merchant who staged this famous tasting?*